Printing management system and method, program product used in printing management, and authentication method

ABSTRACT

Incapability of printing as a result of prohibition of authentication due to a difference between functions of authentication processing in printing apparatuses is prevented, by acquiring a function of authentication processing of a concerned printing apparatus. It is determined whether or not inputted identification information can be processed by authentication processing of the printing apparatus, based on the acquired function. If the result of the determination is negative, a data format of the inputted identification information is converted.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a system that includes an informationprocessing apparatus, such as a personal computer or the like, and anoutput apparatus, such as a printer or the like, and to a printingmanagement method or an authentication method executed in the system.

2. Description of the Related Art

Conventional printing systems utilize a technique called departmentmanagement in which an ID is provided for each department that uses aprinter, a user is authenticated using the ID, and it is allowed, forexample, to count the number of obtained printed copies for eachdepartment. In a first stage, only numerals have been used for an IDused in the above-described department management, for example, becauseof limitations in user interfaces. However, this approach is not widelyused because its identification capability is inferior and the userscannot easily memorize the numerals. Recently, as a result of technicalimprovements, it is possible to utilize characters other than numerals,such as alphabet letters, or the like, for an ID by performing afunction expansion using a card reader or the like.

Conventionally, if there arises a difference between functions dependingon the presence/absence of a function expansion, it is necessary toexactly know whether or not the concerned printer is able to perform afunction expansion, and perform a setting corresponding to the currentsituation before starting printing. If such processing is not performed,expected results cannot be obtained. Particularly, in authenticationprocessing utilizing a department management technique, authenticationis prohibited, and printing cannot be performed, thereby causing moreproblems than in other cases.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to prevent transfer of an ID,which causes mismatching in a connected printing apparatus (printer), byautomatically discriminating a functional level of the printingapparatus internally and determining whether or not an ID correspondingto the discriminated functional level is used during authenticationprocessing, and to improve availability of the ID by providing anarrangement such that a user need not be aware of a difference betweenIDs between different printing apparatuses.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a printing managementsystem for managing use of a printing apparatus based on identificationinformation includes function acquisition means for acquiring a functionof authentication processing of a printing apparatus that performsauthentication processing based on inputted identification information,determination means for determining whether or not the authenticationprocessing of the printing apparatus is able to process the inputtedidentification information, based on the function acquired by thefunction acquisition means, and conversion means for converting a dataformat of the inputted identification information, when a result of adetermination by the determination means is negative.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a printingmanagement system for managing use of a printing apparatus based onidentification information includes function acquisition means foracquiring a function of authentication processing of a printingapparatus that performs authentication processing based on inputtedidentification information, determination means for determining whetheror not the authentication processing of the printing apparatus is ableto process the inputted identification information, based on thefunction acquired by the function acquisition means, and display controlmeans for displaying on a display unit a message indicating incapabilityof performing the authentication processing, when a result of adetermination by the determination means is negative.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, a printingmanagement method for managing use of a printing apparatus based onidentification information includes a function acquisition step ofacquiring a function of authentication processing of a printingapparatus that performs authentication processing based on inputtedidentification information, a determination step of determining whetheror not the authentication processing of the printing apparatus is ableto process the inputted identification information, based on thefunction acquired in the function acquisition step, and a conversionstep of converting a data format of the inputted identificationinformation when a result of a determination in the determination stepis negative.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a printingmanagement method for managing use of a printing apparatus based onidentification information includes a function acquisition step ofacquiring a function of authentication processing of a printingapparatus that performs authentication processing based on inputtedidentification information, a determination step of determining whetheror not the authentication processing of the printing apparatus is ableto process the inputted identification information, based on thefunction acquired in the function acquisition step, and a displaycontrol step of displaying a message indicating incapability ofperforming the authentication processing, when a result of adetermination in the determination step is negative.

According to yet a further aspect of the present invention, a programproduct for implementing a method used in printing management formanaging use of a printing apparatus based on identification informationcauses a computer to execute a function acquisition step of acquiring afunction of authentication processing of a printing apparatus thatperforms authentication processing based on inputted identificationinformation, a determination step of determining whether or not theauthentication processing of the printing apparatus is able to processthe inputted identification information, based on the function acquiredin the function acquisition step, and a conversion step of converting adata format of the inputted identification information when a result ofa determination in the determination step is negative.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, a programfor implementing a method used in printing management for managing useof a printing apparatus based on identification information causes acomputer to execute a function acquisition step of acquiring a functionof authentication processing of a printing apparatus that performsauthentication processing based on inputted identification information,a determination step of determining whether or not the authenticationprocessing of the printing apparatus is able to process the inputtedidentification information, based on the function acquired in thefunction acquisition step, and a display control step of displaying amessage indicating incapability of performing the authenticationprocessing on a display unit, when a result of a determination in thedetermination step is negative.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, anauthentication method in a system for managing use of a printingapparatus based on identification information includes the steps ofacquiring a function of authentication processing of an authenticationapparatus that performs authentication processing based on inputtedidentification information, determining whether or not theauthentication processing of the authentication apparatus is able toprocess the inputted identification information, based on the acquiredfunction, and converting a data format of the inputted identificationinformation when a result of a determination in the determination stepis negative.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, anauthentication method in a system for managing use of a printingapparatus based on identification information includes the steps ofacquiring a function of authentication processing of an authenticationapparatus that performs authentication processing based on inputtedidentification information, determining whether or not theauthentication processing of the authentication apparatus is able toprocess the inputted identification information, based on the acquiredfunction, and displaying a message indicating incapability of performingthe authentication processing on a display unit, when a result of adetermination in the determination step is negative.

The foregoing and other objects, advantages and features of the presentinvention will become more apparent from the following detaileddescription of a preferred embodiment taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a departmentmanagement system;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the flow of a printing process in whichdepartment management is performed;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a user interface screen;

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a data configuration of a formedprinting job;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a user screen indicating failure ofauthentication;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an input mechanism of a printingapparatus;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a card-reader unit;

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a comparison between differentauthentication processings;

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the flow of a printing process thatincludes authentication processing;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a printing process to be executed bya printer driver;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an authentication process to beexecuted by utility software for a department management system; and

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an error screen, indicatingincapability of a authentication process because an alphabet letter isincluded in a department ID.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be describedwith reference to the drawings.

First, a department management system according to the embodiment willbe described. FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating adepartment management system. In FIG. 1, a client computer 100, aprinting apparatus 101 and a server computer 102 for departmentmanagement are interconnected via a network 1. Although in. FIG. 1 onlya single client computer 100 and a single printing apparatus 101 areillustrated, a plurality of client computers and a plurality of printingapparatuses may also be connected via the network 1.

The printing apparatus 101 may be a laser-beam printer, an ink-jetprinter, a copier, a composite apparatus, a facsimile apparatus, or thelike.

An operating system (hereinafter abbreviated as an “OS”) is installed inthe client computer 100, and application software 100 a and a printerdriver 100 c that are necessary for printing processing are installed inthe OS.

Printing processing is usually started by a user's assignment in theapplication software 100 a. Upon start of the printing processing, theapplication software 100 a provides a graphics engine 100 b of the OSwith a GDI (Graphical Device Interface). The graphics engine 100 bconverts the received GDI into a DDI (Device Driver Interface), andtransmits the DDI to the printer driver 100 c.

The printer driver 100 c that has received the DDI converts the DDI intodata that depends on the printing apparatus 101, for example, printingdata described in the PDL (Process Design Language), or the like, andprovides a spooler 100 d of the OS with the printing data as a printingjob.

The printing job provided to the spooler 100 d is transferred to theassigned printing apparatus 101 according to a port management functionof the OS. The printing apparatus 101 performs printing processing inaccordance with the assignment of the received printing job.

Utility software 100 e for department management is installed in theclient computer 100. The utility software 100 e has the function ofperforming two-way communication with the printing apparatus 101, andmakes an inquiry about authentication (to be described later) using thisfunction.

The printing apparatus 101 has the function of department management.More specifically, the printing apparatus 101 stores informationnecessary for department management, such as department-managementinformation 101 a, log information 101 b, and the like, and performsprocessing, such as determination of authentication, using theinformation, and the like.

Server application software 102 a for department management is installedin the server computer 102 for department management. The serverapplication software 102 for department management edits thedepartment-management information 101 a stored in the printing apparatus101, acquires the log information 101 b stored in the printing apparatus101, calculates the number of printed copies, and performs accountingfor each department based on the acquired log information 101 b.

Department management performed in the above-described environment willnow be described in accordance with a flow sequence for printingprocessing. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an outline of the flow ofprinting processing in which department management is performed Uponstart of printing in the application software 100 a installed in theclient computer 100, the printer driver 100 c is started via thegraphics engine 100 b (step S200). In this environment of departmentmanagement, authentication processing is generated before the printerdriver 100 c starts conversion processing to convert receivedinformation into printing data.

First, the printer driver 100 c that has received an assignment of theDDI from the OS provides the user with a user interface for displayingor inputting information, before starting processing, and urges input ofan ID (identification information) for department management, and apassword (step S201).

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a user interface screen300. When the user inputs a department ID and a password in inputregions 301 and 302, respectively, and depresses a button 303,authentication processing is started. When a button 304 is depressed,authentication processing is interrupted (omitted), and processing toform printing data is started. However, insertion of a departmentmanagement ID into a printing job (to be described later) is notperformed. Accordingly, whether or not the printing job is printeddepends on whether or not a setting at the printing apparatus 101permits the printing. When a password is not set at the printingapparatus 101 to be authenticated, a password need not be inputted.Although not particularly described hereinafter, a password is alwaysadded as one of the sets of information included in a department ID.

As a result of input of necessary information (step S201),authentication processing is started. Then, the department ID isconverted into numerical data (step S202). This operation will bedescribed in detail later.

The department ID inputted to the printer driver 100 c via a userinterface 300 is transferred to the utility software 100 e fordepartment management together with a request for authenticationprocessing (step S203). The utility software 100 e for departmentmanagement asks the printing apparatus 101 whether or not the departmentID is valid, using the two-way communication function with the printingapparatus 101 (step S204). The printing apparatus 101 compares thisinquiry with the department-management information 101 a registered inadvance within the printing apparatus 101 to evaluate validity of thedepartment ID, and transmits the result of determination to the utilitysoftware 100 e for department management (step S205).

The utility software 100 e for department management notifies theprinter driver 101 c of the received determination result (step S206).When the determination result indicates validity of the department ID,the printer driver 101 c starts processing of converting the DDIreceived from the OS into printing data (step S207). At that time, thedepartment ID is inserted into the formed printing data.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a data configuration of the formedprinting job. Data of the printing job mainly includes printing-jobinformation, printing-setting information, and printing data. Theprinting-job information includes information indicating the title ofthe job, information indicating the name of a computer (host computer)that has formed the printing data, and department-managementinformation. The department ID and the password are stored as departmentmanagement information. The printing-setting information includes thenumber of printed copies, layout setting, assignment ofcolor/monochrome, and the type of sheets. The printing data is describedwith the PDL, and an image corresponding to the printing data is printedby the printing apparatus 101.

When it has been determined in the authentication processing in stepS207 that the department ID is invalid, a user interface screenindicating the fact is displayed (see FIG. 5), and re-input of adepartment ID and a password is urged by displaying the user interfacescreen shown in FIG. 3. Thus, conversion processing into printing datais not performed unless a correct department ID is inputted, and it ispossible to limit users of the printing apparatus 101. FIG. 5 is adiagram illustrating a user interface screen indicating thatauthentication has failed.

As in ordinary printing, the formed printing data is transferred to theassigned printing apparatus 101 via the spooler 100 d of the OS (stepS208). The printing apparatus 101 executes printing processing based onassignment of the received printing data to generate printing output bythe printer driver 101 c (step S209). At that time, the printingapparatus 101 stores the department ID inserted in the printing jobtogether with count information of the printing job, such as the numberof printed copies, assignment of duplex printing, a particular type ofsheets, assignment of monochrome/color, and the like, as the loginformation 101 b.

Thus, the sever application software 102 a for department managementknows what type of printing is being performed and how the printingapparatus is being used for each department, based on the department IDand count information corresponding to the department ID.

The department-management information 101 a used for authentication andthe log information 101 b used for counting is managed by the serverapplication software 102 a for department management. Such managementmay be performed for a plurality of printing apparatuses interconnectedvia a network, thereby allowing unitary management of these apparatuses.

Next, a description will be provided of a function expansion for theprinting apparatus and a change of the department ID as a result of thefunction expansion, in an environment having the above-describeddepartment management function.

In first-stage printing apparatuses, the type of characters that can beused for a department ID is limited, such that only numerals (0-9) canbe utilized. This is because only numerals can be inputted using aten-digit keypad in an input mechanism (main-body operation panel) of aprinting apparatus. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an input mechanismof a printing apparatus.

Accordingly, a department ID has been handled as numerical data ininternal processing. However, an ID comprising only numerical values hasmany problems such that, for example, it has a poor identificationrecognizability, and it is difficult for the user to memorize the ID.Therefore, it is desirable that the user is able to use characters otherthan numerical values, such as alphabet characters, or the like.

For that purpose, a function expansion is performed using, for example,an optional card-reader unit. It is thereby possible to provide aprinting apparatus in which use of a main-body panel is unnecessary toinput information, and alphabet characters, or the like, may be used inaddition to numerical values for a department ID, without modifying themain body of the printing apparatus.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a card-reader unit (hereinafterabbreviated as a “card reader”). When the user inserts a card 700 inwhich information has been recorded magnetically or by using an IC(integrated circuit), or the like, into a card reader 701, the cardreader 701 reads recorded contents and inputs information indicating adepartment ID and a password to the printing apparatus 101. In thisconfiguration, the department ID is provided as character-string data(alphanumeric character codes) instead of numerical data.

As a result of such a function expansion, the following problems arise.FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a comparison between authenticationprocessing in a printing apparatus not subjected to a function expansionand authentication processing in a printing apparatus that has beensubjected to a function expansion by providing a card reader or thelike. In FIG. 8, each of reference numerals 800 and 801 represents anexample of input of a department ID by the user. Reference numeral 800represents input of a department ID comprising only numerals, andreference numeral 801 represents input of a department ID including onlyalphabet characters. In input operations 800 and 801, differentdepartment ID's are inputted on the same input screen. The inputteddepartment ID is handled as character-string data in order to alsohandle alphabet characters.

Reference numeral 802 represents a printing apparatus that has not beensubjected to a function expansion, so that only a department IDcomprising numerals may be used. Reference numeral 803 represents aprinting apparatus that has been subjected to a function expansion inwhich a department ID that includes alphabet characters may also beused.

Operations when performing authentication processing for each printingapparatus at each of the above-described input operations will now beconsidered.

The printing apparatus 803, which has been subjected to a functionexpansion, is able to perform authentication processing for any IDformat of the inputted department ID 800 or 801 by handling the ID ascharacter codes. However, in the case of the printing apparatus 802,which has not been subjected to function expansion, it is necessary toperform conversion from character-string data into numerical data for anID comprising only numerical values (input 800). Since an ID format thatincludes characters such as alphabet characters, or the like (as in801), cannot be processed, it is necessary to prepare some prohibitionprocessing at a preceding stage. Accordingly, a client that inputs adepartment ID must switch processing depending on a presence/absence ofa function expansion in the printing apparatus.

Conventionally, however, when switching processing of a printer driverbased on such a function expansion of an apparatus, the user must set inadvance information relating to the function expansion via a userinterface of the printer driver, or the like. Since the user mustexactly know of the function expansion of a printing apparatus andperform a correct setting, this approach is troublesome to the user. Ifa correct setting is not performed, there is the possibility that anunexpected output result is obtained. Particularly: in processingrelated to department management, if a setting is incorrect,authentication processing cannot be performed, resulting in thepossibility that no prints can be obtained.

Accordingly, in the present invention, by automatically determining thefunctional level of a printing apparatus at each printing processing,and automatically switching to an appropriate processing based on theresult of the determination, erroneous processing is prevented, and theuser is unaware of a difference between printing apparatuses.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the flow of printing processing thatincludes authentication processing. Upon start of printing processing(step S900), the user interface screen shown in FIG. 3 is displayed asin the case of FIG. 2, and the user is urged to input a department IDand a password (step S901). This user interface is configured so thatboth numerals and alphabet characters may be used for the department IDirrespective of the presence/absence of function expansion. Accordingly,the user may input a department ID assigned for each printing apparatuswithout being aware of a difference in the functional levels of theprinting apparatuses.

Upon input of the department ID (step S901), a presence/absence offunction expansion of the printing apparatus to be used is confirmed.This processing is performed via the utility software 100 e fordepartment management. First, inquiry of authentication is provided fromthe printer driver 101 c to the utility software 100 e for departmentmanagement together with the department ID in the form of a characterstring (character codes) (step S902).

The utility software 100 e for department management that has receivedthe inquiry asks the printing apparatus 101 about a presence/absence ofan optional card reader, as the first step (step S903). The printingapparatus 101 detects a presence-absence of a card reader and transmitsthe result of detection to the utility software 100 e for departmentmanagement (step S904).

After this step, execution steps differ depending on whether or not acard reader is present. When the presence of a card reader has beenconfirmed, steps S905A-905B are executed. When the presence of a cardreader has not been confirmed, steps S906A-S906E are executed.

When the presence of a card reader has been confirmed by a response fromthe printing apparatus 101, inquiry about authentication is performedusing the department ID already received from the printer driver 100 c(step S905A). The printing apparatus 101 determines acapability/incapability of authentication by comparing the receiveddepartment ID with the list of department ID's already registered withinthe printing apparatus 101, and transmits the result of determination tothe utility software 100 e for department management (step S905B). Theutility software 100 e for department management transmits the result tothe printer driver 100 c (step S907). If printing is permitted as theresult of authentication, the printer driver 100 c forms printing data(step S908), and transmits a printing job to the spooler 100 d byinserting department-management information in the printing job (stepS909). Printing is then performed (step S910).

When the printing apparatus 101 does not correspond to a department IDthat includes alphabet characters, i.e., when a card reader is notprovided, the following operations are performed. In this case, sincethe presence of a card reader is not recognized, the printing apparatus101 transmits a response indicating the absence of a card reader (stepS904). The utility software 100 e that has received the responsetransmits an error code indicating that authentication withcharacter-string data cannot be performed to the printer driver 100 c(step S906A).

The printer driver 100 c that has received the error code switches fromauthentication using a department ID comprising character-string data toauthentication using a department ID comprising numerical data. If analphabet character is included in the inputted ID, further processingcannot be performed. Hence, the processing is interrupted, and a warningmessage (see FIG. 12) is displayed for the user. Then, the processreturns to step S901, and a retry is urged by again displaying the userinterface screen shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating anerror picture frame indicating an incapability of authenticationprocessing because an alphabet character is included in the departmentID. The user can recognize a difference in printing apparatuses only bythis message.

When the inputted ID comprises only numerals, conversion into numericaldata may be performed. Hence, conversion processing into numerical datais performed (step S906B). The department ID, which has been convertedinto the numerical data is again transmitted to ask the utility software100 e for department management for authentication processing (stepS906C). The utility software 100 e for department management again asksthe printing apparatus 101 about authentication using the department IDwith the numerical values received together with the request (stepS906D). The printing apparatus 101 determines whetherpermission/prohibition of printing is appropriate, and transmits theresult of the determination to the utility software 100 e for departmentmanagement (step S906E).

Then, as in the above-described manner, the utility software 100 e fordepartment management transmits the result to the printer driver 100 c(step S907). If the result of authentication permits printing, theprinter driver 100 c forms printing data (step S908), and transmits aprinting job to the spooler 100 d by inserting department-managementinformation in the printing job (step S909). Printing is then performed(step S910).

When an indication of incapability has been transmitted as the result ofan authentication, a message indicating failure of authentication (seeFIG. 5) is displayed as in the above-described manner, and the processreturns to step S901, where the user interface screen shown in FIG. 3 isdisplayed in order to urge re-input of a department ID and a password.

As described above, by automatic internal determination of apresence/absence of function expansion by the printer driver 100 c andthe utility software 100 e for department management, it is possible toprovide a conventional department management function without indicatinga difference between printing apparatuses to a user unless the userprovides an erroneous input. At the same time, it is possible to preventthe problem that authentication processing is performed using animproper department ID due to an incorrect setting.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating printing processing executed by theprinter driver 100 c. This processing is executed when an instructionfor printing is inputted to the application software 100 a. First, theprinter driver 100 c displays the user interface screen shown in FIG. 3,and urges the user to input a department ID and a password (step S1000).Thereafter, when the department ID and the password has been inputtedand an OK button 303 has been depressed, the input department ID and thepassword are transmitted to the utility software 100 e for departmentmanagement, and authentication processing is requested (step S1001).

Then, transmission of information from the utility software 100 e fordepartment management is awaited. Upon transmission of the information,it is determined whether the information is an error code or informationindicating permission of authentication (step S1002). If authenticationis permitted, the process proceeds to step S1008. If an error code hasbeen transmitted, the process proceeds to step S1003.

In step S1003, the contents of the error code are discriminated in orderto determine whether the contents indicate an error indicatingincapability of authentication of character-string data or an errorindicating failure of authentication (step S1003). In the case offailure of authentication, a message indicating failure ofauthentication is displayed as shown in FIG. 5 (step S1010), and theprocess returns to step S1000 in order to again urge input of adepartment ID and a password.

If the error code indicates incapability of authentication with adepartment ID having data in the form of a character string as a resultof a determination in step S1003, it is then determined in step S1004whether or not an alphabet character is included in the inputteddepartment ID (step S1004). If the result of the determination in stepS1004 is affirmative, since further processing cannot be performed, amessage indicating incapability of authentication processing with adepartment ID that includes an alphabet character is displayed (stepS1011), and then the process returns to step S1000 in order to againurge input of a department ID and a password.

If the result of the determination in step S1004 is negative, i.e., ifthe inputted department ID comprises only numerals, conversionprocessing into numerical data is performed (step S1005). Then, thedepartment ID comprising the numerical data is transmitted to theutility software 100 e for department management, and authenticationprocessing is again requested (step S1006).

Then, transmission of information from the utility software 100 e fordepartment management is awaited. Upon transmission of the information,it is then determined whether the information indicates permission ofauthentication processing or failure of authentication (step S1007). Ifauthentication is permitted, data of a printing job including thedepartment ID is generated (step S1008), and the generated data istransmitted to the printing apparatus 101 (step S1009).

If it has been determined in step S1007 that authentication has failed,a message indicating failure of authentication is displayed (stepS1012), and then the process returns to step S1000 in order to againurge input of a department ID and a password.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating authentication processing to beexecuted by the utility software 100 e for department management. First,a request of authentication processing is received from the printerdriver 100 c (step S1100). At that time, data indicating a department IDis also received. Then, the printing apparatus 101 is asked about afunction for authentication processing possessed by the printingapparatus 101 (step S1101). More specifically, whether or not a cardreader is possessed (or connected) may be directly asked.

Then, it is determined whether or not the printing apparatus 101 has afunction necessary for authentication processing based on a responsefrom the printing apparatus 101 (step S1102). More specifically, it isdetermined whether or not the printing apparatus 101 can authenticate adepartment ID comprising character-string data. If the result of thedetermination in step S1102 is affirmative, because the printingapparatus 101 has an expanded function, the process proceeds to stepS1105.

If the result of the determination in step S1102 is negative, the factis notified to the printer driver 100 c (step S1103). More specifically,the fact that authentication processing cannot be performed with adepartment ID comprising character-string data is notified.

Thereafter, the printer driver 100 c converts the department ID intonumerical data. Then, a request for authentication processing is againreceived together with the department ID comprising numerical data (stepS1104).

After step S1102 or step S1104, a request for authentication processingis transmitted to the printing apparatus 101 based on the department IDtransmitted from the printer driver 100 c (step S1105). Then, a resultof authentication is received from the printing apparatus 101 (stepS1106), and the result is transmitted to the printer driver 100 c (stepS1107).

In the foregoing description, the department ID may be identificationinformation for identifying a host computer or identificationinformation for identifying a user, instead of identificationinformation for identifying a department.

The present invention may, of course, also be achieved by supplying asystem or an apparatus with a storage medium storing program codes ofsoftware (program codes corresponding to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.9-11) for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiment, andreading and executing the program codes stored in the storage medium bymeans of a computer (or a CPU (central processing unit) or an MPU(microprocessor unit) of the client computer 100) of the system or theapparatus.

In this case, the program codes themselves read from the storage mediumrealize the new functions of the present invention, so that the storagemedium storing the program codes constitutes the present invention.

For example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetooptical disk, anoptical disk, a CD (compact disc)-ROM (read-only memory), a CD-R(recordable), a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, a DVD(digital versatile disc), a DVD-ROM, or the like, may be used as thestorage medium for supplying the program codes.

The present invention may, of course, be applied not only to a case inwhich the functions of the above-described embodiment are realized byexecuting program codes read by a computer, but also to a case in whichan OS, or the like, operating in a computer executes a part or theentirety of actual processing, and the functions of the above-describedembodiment are realized by the processing.

The present invention may, of course, be applied to a case in which,after writing program codes read from a storage medium into a memoryprovided in a function expanding board inserted into a computer or in afunction expanding unit connected to the computer, a CPU, or the like,provided in the function-expanding board or the function expanding unitperforms a part or the entirety of actual processing, and the functionsof the above-described embodiment are realized by the processing.

The present invention may, of course, also be applied to a case in whicha program is distributed to a requester from a storage medium recordingprogram codes of software for realizing the functions of theabove-described embodiment via a communication line, such aspersonal-computer communication, or the like.

As described above, according to the present invention, by determining apresence/absence of a function necessary for authentication processing,a department management function, as in the conventional approach, isprovided without indicating to a user a difference between functions, orat least to minimize such indication. It is thereby possible to improvea general usability for the user, and prevent problems that areexpected, to arise when the user utilizes a printing apparatus withoutunderstanding a difference between the functions of printers.

More specifically, it is determined whether or not a printing apparatuscan perform authentication processing for a department ID in the form ofa character string. If the result of the determination is affirmative,authentication processing is performed. If the result of thedetermination is negative, by converting the department ID intonumerical data or causing the user to again input a department ID, it ispossible to prevent problems such that authentication is not permittedand printing is not performed at all.

The individual components shown in outline or designated by blocks inthe drawings are all well known in the art of printing managementsystems and their specific construction and operation are not criticalto the operation or the best mode for carrying out the invention.

While the present invention has been described with respect to what ispresently considered to be the preferred embodiment, it is to beunderstood that the invention is not limited to the disclosedembodiment. To the contrary, the present invention is intended to covervarious modifications and equivalent arrangements included within thespirit and scope of the appended claims. The scope of the followingclaims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompassall such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.

1.-2. (canceled)
 3. A printing management system for managing use of aprinting apparatus based on identification information, said systemcomprising: a function acquisition unit adapted to acquire a function ofauthentication processing of a printing apparatus that performsauthentication processing based on identification information; adetermination unit adapted to determine whether or not theauthentication processing of the printing apparatus is able to process atype of inputted identification information, based on the functionacquired by said function acquisition unit; and a display control unitadapted to display on a display unit a message indicating incapabilityof performing the authentication processing, when a result of adetermination by said determination unit is that the authenticationprocessing of the printing apparatus is not able to process the type ofinputted identification information.
 4. A printing management systemaccording to claim 3, wherein said display control unit displays aninput screen for inputting the identification information in response toinput of an instruction for printing, and again displays the inputscreen when the result of the determination by said determination unitis that the authentication processing of the printing apparatus is notable to process the type of inputted identification information. 5.-10.(canceled)
 11. A printing management method for managing use of aprinting apparatus based on identification information, said methodcomprising: a function acquisition step of acquiring a function ofauthentication processing of a printing apparatus that performsauthentication processing based on identification information; adetermination step of determining whether or not the authenticationprocessing of the printing apparatus is able to process a type ofinputted identification information, based on the function acquired insaid function acquisition step; and a display control step of displayingon a display unit a message indicating incapability of performing theauthentication processing, when a result of a determination in saiddetermination step is that the authentication processing of the printingapparatus is not able to process the type of inputted identificationinformation.
 12. A printing management method according to claim 11,wherein, in said display control step, an input screen for inputting theidentification information is displayed in response to input of aninstruction for printing, and the input screen is again displayed whenthe result of the determination in said determination step is that theauthentication processing of the printing apparatus is not able toprocess the type of inputted identification information. 13.-14.(canceled)
 15. A program product stored on a computer-readable medium,the program product embodying a computer program for implementing aprinting management method for managing use of a printing apparatusbased on identification information, the method comprising: a functionacquisition step of acquiring a function of authentication processing ofa printing apparatus that performs authentication processing based onidentification information; a determination step of determining whetheror not the authentication processing of the printing apparatus is ableto process a type of inputted identification information, based on thefunction acquired in said function acquisition step; and a displaycontrol step of displaying on a display unit a message indicatingincapability of performing the authentication processing, when a resultof a determination in said determination step is that the authenticationprocessing of the printing apparatus is not able to process the type ofinputted identification information.
 16. A program product according toclaim 15, wherein, in said display control step, an input screen forinputting the identification information is displayed in response toinput of an instruction for printing, and the input screen is againdisplayed when the result of the determination in said determinationstep is that the authentication processing of the printing apparatus isnot able to process the type of inputted identification information. 17.(canceled)
 18. An authentication method comprising the steps of:acquiring a function of authentication processing of an authenticationapparatus that performs authentication processing based onidentification information; determining whether or not theauthentication processing of the authentication apparatus is able toprocess a type of inputted identification information, based on theacquired function; and displaying on a display unit a message indicatingincapability of performing the authentication processing, when a resultof a determination in said determination step is that the authenticationprocessing of the authentication apparatus is not able to process thetype of inputted identification information.
 19. An informationprocessing apparatus comprising: a function acquisition unit adapted toacquire a function of authentication processing of an authenticationapparatus that performs authentication processing based onidentification information; a determination unit adapted to determinewhether or not the authentication processing of the authenticationapparatus is able to process a type of inputted identificationinformation, based on the function acquired by said function acquisitionunit; and a display control unit adapted to display on a display unit amessage indicating incapability of performing the authenticationprocessing, when a result of determination by said determination unit isthat the authentication processing of the authentication apparatus isnot able to process the type of inputted identification information. 20.A printing management system according to claim 3, wherein the type ofinputted identification information which the authentication processingof the printing apparatus is not able to process is identificationinformation including an alphabet character.
 21. A printing managementmethod according to claim 11, wherein the type of inputtedidentification information which the authentication processing of theprinting apparatus is not able to process is identification informationincluding an alphabet character.